Social media and cyber assault : A hate story

Those ‘ussies’ (group selfies) on Facebook and Instagram with hashtags like ‘#squad’ is your daily dose of social media. But have you thought about all this turning against you?

Two months ago, a young girl in Mumbai became a victim of social media assault. Her ‘WhatsApp’ profile picture was misused by an unknown person and what followed must’ve been quite traumatising. The person used her picture and started a Facebook page called ‘Padosan ka adda’. Her mobile number was also added to the page and the girl started receiving multiple calls and messages. This anonymous person didn’t stop there. Another account was opened using her details. For the last two months, the young girl has received inappropriate messages and calls from all over the world.

Fed up with the calls and messages, she filed a complaint at the Mulund police station but the police haven’t been able to track the culprit yet. The distressed girl has requested the police to seek help from a special cyber consultant. The Mulund police have registered the crime under the IT Act, but claim they need not set up a private cyber consultant for the case. Although the police have assured the victim that they would nab the culprit, they haven’t been able to trace any clues in the last couple of months. In the meanwhile, the victim has been receiving endless calls and messages which scream obscenity.

This drives home a point - youth need to be vigilant about cyber security in this technology-driven world. Social media is a vast platform but cyber crime is growing by leaps and bounds as well, and young girls seem to be targeted quite frequently. Our take - Do not hesitate to approach the authorities if you are a victim of cyber assault. Boys, sending random messages to girls and objectifying them is not cool. Stop with the ‘do you want to do friendship with me’ clichéd requests. No,they don’t want anything to do with you. Quit the harassment.